Ziggy Graphic Novel Charitable Tour

$793
of $8,000 goal

This charitable tour at different Oz festivals and an outdoor education program (with stops at bookstores, comic shops, schools, and libraries during the festivals or along the way) will help create and promote a new graphic novel, _Ziggy Zig-zags the Light and Dark Fantastic_, and have artist Vincent Myrand demonstrating how he drew and painted the panels for the project and will have author Ron Baxley, Jr. discussing how the project references classic children’s literature, such as L. Frank Baum projects illustrated by W.W. Denslow, in an entertaining way. They will be selling the graphic novel, prints, and originals, and some proceeds will be used to help the Oz festivals, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and the Barnwell County Animal Shelter in adoption efforts.

_Ziggy Zig-zags the Light and Dark Fantastic_ is a graphic novel with a story by author Ron Baxley, Jr. and art and layout by Vincent Myrand. Within the graphic novel, Ziggy, a Corgi, is one of many steeds of the elves in Wales. (According to Welsh mythology, in fact, the white markings around many Pembroke Welsh Corgis' heads and around their necks indicated that small saddles and stirrups were once on their bodies and that the Corgis were used as horses by the elves). As a steed, Ziggy is chosen by the elves to rescue various characters in different fantasy worlds, including Oz, Narnia, and other fantastic locations. During his quests, he is pursued by the Dark Elf, a fallen elf from the Welsh woods. Whether he can evade this foe and complete his quests will have to be read and seen when the graphic novel is complete and available in May 2016.

The character Ziggy is based on a Pembroke Welsh Corgi Baxley, Jr. adopted from an animal shelter in 2013 when the Corgi was just one year old. Baxley has spent a lot of time doing basic training techniques with Ziggy since he obtained him, but he has never been formally trained. For the tour, at least a month of obedience classes will need to be covered and for another purpose. Baxley suffers from anxiety, depression, and bipolar 2 and lost his grandmother and father in 2013, and toward the end of 2013 and beyond, Ziggy has been there for him during uncontrollable sobbing and for emotional support in general. In order for Ziggy to be named an emotional support dog by a doctor and be able to go to many places with Baxley and on the tour, he will need to go through basic obedience training. The project Baxley, Jr. and Myrand are creating thematically deals with anxiety and shows how supportive dogs can be during times of crisis.

We will honor the old incentive item set-up from an earlier crowd funding campaign, but we will simplify the new incentive items for the GoFundMe and just offer one limited edition black and white print from the graphic novel signed by the illustrator and author for every $5 donation (up to $30 worth or up to 6 prints as a limit of this incentive... iow, LIMIT 6), a signed limited edition print of the color cover from the graphic novel for every $40 donation, a T-shirt signed by the artist and author with a special logo for the tour and tour information for a $50 donation, and an early release copy of the graphic novel signed and personalized by the author and illustrator for every $100 donation. Thank you very much for taking the time to look at our project and for considering giving to it.

Copies of Volume 1 of the fantasy, Corgi graphic novel by artist, Vincent Myrand, and author Ron Baxley, Jr., _Ziggy Zig-zags the Light and Dark Fantastic_, are available at comics shops in Columbia, S.C. and Augusta, Georgia as well as the All Things Oz museum in Chittenango, New York and the Little Red Barn arts shop in Ron's home-town of Barnwell, S.C. They are also available directly from author Ron Baxley, Jr. with Priority Shipping included by PayPaling $22 to rbaxley37@gmail.com or mailing a U.S. POSTAL money order for that amount to: P.O. Box 1584;Barnwell, SC 29812. Ron can bring anybody within an hour's drive of Barnwell, S.C. /his home-town area itself a copy for $15 cash. For more information, email rbaxley37@gmail.com .